The Campfighter

You may remember - if you're a regular reader - that back in June, while doing a wee advertisement for the latest New Zealand Journal of Photography, I stated "I hear the next issue of the Journal is going to be a pretty special one too - due September I think."

Well it is out. Or at least it was in my post box earlier today, so it should be in all good magazine shops shortly - and of course what makes them good is that they hold the Journal.

How special is it I hear you ask. Well you only need to check out the cover.


And maybe the contents page.


Okay so maybe the image isn't big enough. Look harder!!

(Or if you hadn't realised, you can click on the image and it opens bigger, cool huh?!)

Oh yeah there's some crap (joking!!) by/about other people too but you get that.

So anyways enough of that.

I would like to thank David Langman at the NZCP for recognising my greatness. And extra special thanks and love and kisses etc to Katy Corner (Guest editor) who chose to include my work, and Mark Amery for writing such sumptuous words (of course you'll have to buy a copy to find out how sumptuous).

I'd also like to thank my family for all their support, James, Catherine, David and everyone else; Brian, the director; the producers, Gary, Larry, and Barry; the actors in the show who clearly weren't as good as me cos otherwise they'd be up here; the other actors who were up against me - they can't help that they're losers; Paris Hilton for you know what; my good friend Graham and his guitar; and of course God (and maybe Bob Pollard).

Twilight campfighter
You build your fire into an open wound
You want us to feel better
On these darker trails
With light revealing holy grails
To hike through dangerous weather
You need twilight eyes

The Marker

The thing about going off road - even off road along a legitimate 2 wheel drive track like this one - is that sometimes there's not much of a road at all. Sometimes you wonder how an ordinary 2wd will cope with the road, and you're grateful you have a classy 4wd. Sometimes you just cruise along mindlessly heading in the vague direction of where you want to go. Or, in some cases, you just cruise along mindlessly heading in the vague direction of where you're cruising along mindlessly heading. Sometimes you have to follow markers for fear of having the bejesus bombed out of you by wayward artillery. Sometimes you just wish the snow was so low you actually need the markers to decide where to drive. Sometimes you're just happy cruising along on a beautiful chilly blue winter's day getting you car filthy as you drive through puddles and potholes filled with snow melt, occasionally stopping to take a photo or two - sometimes ...


PS - anyone wanting experience in the important life skill of cleaning a car, I know one that could use a bloody good scrub.

The Missing

Okay, so I've been back from the big smoke for over a week now. As sick as I was of (working in) Auckland, I felt strange emotions coming down Ngaurunga Gorge at 11pm on a Sunday night after having driven from Ohakune in complete isolation (very Quiet Earth).

Anyway, here are two shots I took the day I left Wellington. I had an early start, intending to hang out in the central North Island a bit, but as I headed north the weather got greyer and heavier. Then bursting onto the plateau the sky opened and I was happy.


What's missing here is the other side of the road. The side most people look at - and photograph. Needless to say I did a bit of that myself.